


The Montage Jack

by dracox_serdriel



Series: Another Chance at the Brass Ring, or Season 9 Fan Fiction [21]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Season/Series 09, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angels, Angels are Dicks, Big Secrets, Brotherly Estrangement, Canon-Typical Violence, Case Fic, Demons, Destiel - Freeform, Established Castiel/Dean Winchester, Established Sam Winchester/Original Female Character, F/M, Gen, Het, Human Sacrifice for Profit, Hurt Sam Winchester, Kidnapping, Leviathans, M/M, Mild Language, One Step Behind, Protective Dean Winchester, Protective Sam Winchester, Revelation is a Bitch, Samodge, Slash, Torture, Ulterior Motives, Witches, You Can't Win Them All
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-04
Updated: 2013-08-04
Packaged: 2017-12-23 07:03:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/923366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dracox_serdriel/pseuds/dracox_serdriel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dakota 'Dodge' Gage's visions reveal a ritual human sacrifice to banish creatures to Purgatory. Meanwhile, Garth finds a case in Alabama.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Ten High

**Author's Note:**

> **Spoilers** : Through episode 08x20 Pac-Man Fever
> 
>  **Events and Chronology** : Both 09x20 Closet Chronicles and 09x21 The Montage Jack make references to characters and events that occur in Season 8 Fan Fiction (S8FF), or Trials of Hell and Heart, which is written as part of Dean/Cas Big Bang 2013 and will not be publicly posted until October 1, 2013.

A young boy, beaten and bloody, stood over an edge. He was bound hand and foot, and his face expressed pure terror. 

The ledge was over flame, magma – a volcano. A boy tied up in a volcano, and he's not alone. Dismembered bodies and heads surrounded him – their eyes! The heads were alive – 

A deeply black liquid filled the area. The boy's body was tipped over, down into the magma, and his scream rent the world and made it red. Red and black, like oil and water, never fully mixing – 

Blinding light transformed everything into a sucking void, guzzling the black liquid and the red liquid and even the screams – silence. The world was solid again. Solid and empty of boys and fire – 

Dodge couldn't take it; her world burned like a supernova then went out in total darkness. Sweat and tremor and heart-racing pain left her gasping for air.

 

Sam rolled over, trying to get comfortable. He kept waking up without any real reason and then couldn't fall back asleep. He knew that the most reasonable explanation was the conversation he had with Dodge and its subsequent confusion. They slept in his room for several nights, but one thing after another kept delaying the follow-up conversation they needed to have.

And now he slept alone. More accurately, he was alone in bed trying to sleep. She hadn't explained why she wanted to be in her room tonight, but she made it clear she wanted to be alone.

Normally he had no trouble talking to his girlfriends – or whatever Dodge and he were – about how he felt. He could handle vulnerability and rejection, but for some reason, every time he attempted to bring it up with Dodge, his resolve failed him. Maybe he liked her more than he wanted to admit. 

If he had the heart to speak with Dean, his older brother would tell him he was being a girl. 

His thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of loud mumbling through the walls – coming from Dodge's room. 

He knocked on her door, but all he could hear was more incoherence. When he opened the door, he saw Dodge in the middle of her room, writing. Her eyes were closed, but every movement was purposeful. 

"Dodge?" Sam said as she continued to write. 

Papers were all around her. He guessed her odd mumbling was whatever she was writing, but all he could do was guess. Some things were written in English, others Spanish, Italian, and French, but plenty more were written with non-Aramaic characters. 

"Dodge!" Sam said loudly.

It took him several minutes to shake her out of it. Her eyes were full of tears.

"Dodge, can you hear me?" Sam asked.

"He's dead," she replied.

"What?"

"The little boy. Someone threw him into the fire, and he's dead."

"Dodge, what did you see?"

"And everything else - all the blackness - around him was sucked into a star," she said, terror evident in her voice.

"What else?" Sam prompted

"The wall came back up, and it was solid," she replied.

After a few moments, Dodge crashed her head onto Sam's shoulder. She slept.

"What the hell?" he whispered.


	2. Seven-High Straight

Castiel sifted through the clothing, paper, and photos that covered the walls of Dodge's room. Dean would be unhappy when he woke up to find him gone, but he needed to sort this out. Dodge's state was fragile, and Sam's reaction to it didn't help matters. The angel wanted to be prepared. 

He transcribed names and words from other languages into English for the Winchesters. 

He didn't like what he saw: names, dates, and partial incantations. There was also a repeated phrase that was something like 'back to rubble' or 'back to the horizon.' It only appeared in Enochian and a few other obscure languages, all of which were commonly used in witchcraft and spell work. 

To Castiel, the message of her vision, or at least Sam's recounting of it, was clear: the blood of an innocent purges the darkness from the world. The texts that Dodge scribbled down reminded Cas of the rituals used to open Purgatory, but he only knew rituals to take things out of that place, not throw them in.

"Please tell me that you've found something," Sam said.

"Some of this could be a kind of banishing spell," Cas said, his voice clearly skeptical of his own deduction.

"That's it?" Sam asked. "Banishing what? Where? When?"

"I cannot say," Cas said. 

"What about a guess?"

The angel disliked Sam's current disposition, and he wasn't in the mood to handle it well. "I guess it could be hundreds of things," he replied. "Until she is able to tell us more about what she saw, our conclusions will be limited at best."

Sam rolled his eyes. "Banishing. That's what you said."

"Yes, but – "

"Banishing what?"

Cas shook his head. "I see indications of Purgatory."

"Okay, banishing things to Purgatory," Sam said, his eyes lighting up. "And blackness. She said the blackness disappeared."

"Right," Cas said with disinterest.

"Leviathan," Sam said. "It's gotta be."

"Banishing Leviathan back to Purgatory?" Castiel asked. "You think this is some kind of instruction? So you and Dean can kill Leviathan without my assistance?"

Sam shook his head. "It involved human sacrifice, and we don't do that."

"I don't understand," Cas said. "Leviathans are enemies of Heaven. Usually Dodge's visions illuminate the activity of our enemies, not their demise."

"Unless our other enemies are behind it," Sam pointed out. "Maybe Lucifer is going after the Leviathan."

"Lucifer can smite Leviathan," Cas dismissed. "He might not be as powerful as he once was, but he has at least the power I do."

"Okay, then, what about the King of Hell, Paimon?" 

The angel considered it, "That is possible. But there was no mention of him or his presence in the vision." 

"Dodge is still sleeping, she might be able to tell us more when she wakes up," Sam replied. "This is a good start – "

"Unless it's wrong," Cas cut him off. "You're literally guessing. We haven't even been able to figure out the dead witches and what their battle meant, and you're trying to tie this vision in. Inventing an answer. It's dangerous to do that, especially now."

"Why? If Paimon and Lucifer are tossing the big mouths back into Purgatory, that's a good thing. For us," Sam said.

Cas was near the end of his patience, but he held onto it a little longer. "Remember that the battle between Michael and Lucifer would have created massive collateral damage?" he asked. After Sam nodded, he added, "Why do you think that is?"

"Because they were both powerful archangels – "

"And the fight between them would cause supernatural and natural disasters alike," Cas said. "Lucifer is trying to rebuild his power, and whatever force opposing him is doing the same."

"How does shutting down Leviathans give Lucifer power?" Sam asked. "Wouldn't that just weaken the Leviathan?"

Cas shook his head. "Lucifer is old, and he knows things. He could be building power through their banishment. Or just weakening his enemies. I don't know. That's the point."

Sam shifted his weight uncomfortably. "You're saying that these two forces, they're gearing up."

"We've established as much," the angel protested.

"But you're telling me that they could become so powerful that the battle between them could be as bad as Michael versus Lucifer?"

"Possibly even worse," Cas replied. 

He waited for a few minutes. Sam didn't say anything. "You should go back to sleep," Cas said. 

"You want me to sleep? After that?" 

"Dodge needs you," Cas replied. "If you can't sleep, then go be with her."

Sam nodded idly at that and walked off, leaving the angel in peace for a few more hours until Dean woke up.

 

 **Piedmont, Alabama**. Tara and Alan drove to work together. It wasn't really carpooling, it was just good sense. They pulled into the garage and parked like clockwork at 7:42am. Tara pulled their briefcases out of the back seat and handed Alan's off as they made their way up to the main doors. 

Just as they ducked under the garage height warning signs, the world thickened. They were stuck.

"Sorry," a male voice said. "But you've reached your expiration date."

Kull plunged his fists through Tara's and Alan's spines. Their mouths oozed black blood and silenced their screams. Satisfied with his efforts, Kull released their now-vacant bodies and pilfered their suitcases. 

He disappeared before security made their rounds thirty seconds later.

 

Dean woke up next to Cas, who was watching him. 

"Morning, Dean."

"Cas," Dean replied sleepily. "How's it going?"

"Dodge is currently being incapacitated by her visions, and your brother is beside himself and very annoying," Cas replied quickly. "I came in here because I knew he wouldn't follow."

"Cas," Dean said patiently. "I appreciate honesty, so I'll tell you the truth: I don't appreciate honesty."

Cas tilted his head, but before he could speak, Dean continued, "I mean, you came back to bed not to be with me, but to get away from Sam?" Dean asked. "That's cold." 

"Actually, I came back to bed for both," Cas clarified. 

Dean laughed. "Anything else I should know? Before I rub my eyes?"

"From what I can discern, I believe it is possible that demons are banishing Leviathan back to Purgatory by sacrificing virgins," Cas said in a flat monotone.

Cas cupped Dean's cheek and kissed him as he pulled the hunter up in a sitting position.

Dean kissed back, but he stopped shortly after. "Cas, talking about killing virgins? That's not good foreplay."

"I didn't mean to initiate sexual contact," the angel replied. "I only meant to expedite getting you out of bed."

"Wow, you're a peach this morning," Dean said. 

"I'm not a stone fruit, Dean."

"Jerk," he muttered as he got up and stretched.

 

"Garth, you can't be serious," Sam said into his phone. "No! No! Hell no!"

"What is it?" Dean asked as he joined Sam in the war room.

To Dean he said, "Garth's got a case, but we don't have time."

"Gimme," Dean said as he took the phone. "Garth. What do you got?"

"Two dead folks."

"Okay. And?"

"Coroner reported they were asphyxiated by black goo," Garth said. "Which was the polite way of him saying they were obliterated by it. Definite Leviathan kill."

"Of two people?"

"That's right."

"Garth, big mouths – they eat people. Whole. They don't leave sloppy bits," Dean replied.

"Maybe they do when there's demons involved," Garth said quietly. 

"I just woke up. Little hazy. What?"

"Sulfur was found. Everywhere," Garth said.

"If you're on this case, why are you calling us?" 

"I'm out in Cali, I can't take this case, Dean. Not in time."

"In time? In time for what?"

"Aiden and Krissy. They're the ones who caught wind of this, and I'm not sure how much illegal crapola they can do and git away with right now, Dean. If you and Sam are out there, they'll at least back off."

"Krissy? And Aiden?" Dean repeated slowly. "You sure?"

"Hell yeah I'm sure."

"I thought they were with, you know," Dean said, meaning Linda Tran and Jo Barnes.

"They are, but dude, someone needs to git out there, please, just, go, okay?"

"Yeah, sure."

Dean hung up. 

"Sammy, pack your stuff."

"We can't."

"We need to."

"Dodge is – "

"Kevin is here," Dean said. "He can look after Dodge."

"Someone should be here looking after Kevin," Sam said. "Not the other way around."

"The dude's a good guy, he can handle it – "

"I'm not going anywhere with Dodge in this condition, Dean!" Sam yelled back.

Dean saddled up and closed in on his brother. "I get it. Your girlfriend is sick and you don't wanna leave her behind. But right now, she's in the safest place on earth. And we got friends out there that are in danger. Come on, man, this is Krissy and Aiden – "

"No."

Dean couldn't read Sam's face. His little brother wasn't doing well or backing down, either.

"Fine, Cas and I will take this, but only because he can teleport your ass to Hong Kong if we need you."


	3. Trip Threes

**Piedmont, Alabama**. Castiel looked damn good in a suit. 

Dean knew he should be focused on this case, but his mind kept wandering back to Cas, their bedroom, and the last few nights. Having never been with someone more than a few months, he hadn't experienced this stage. He had been under the impression that the honeymoon phase was the euphoric, sex-tastic time frame for all relationships, and that was it. He never thought there were times when the exhilaration and – for lack of a better word – bliss revved up again, twice as strong. 

"Dean?" Cas asked quietly. 

"Sorry, what?"

"When I do that, you tell me it is 'creepy,'" Cas pointed out in regards to his staring.

"Right, sorry," Dean said. 

"And Krissy and Aiden are here," Cas added.

Dean spun around to see two of the Hunter 'Tweens dressed completely out of character. Aiden wore a stuffy, almost preppy-looking outfit of dress shirt and pants that fit him awkwardly. He even wore a solid-color, boring tie. Krissy had on a formal, conservative dress. 

"Hey – who are you?" Dean stumbled at the sight of them.

"Robert Minot," Aiden replied. "And this is my sister – "

"Helena Minot," Krissy said. 

"Oh-kay. Weird," Dean acknowledged.

"I believe those are their cover identities," Cas explained. "And their attire is such that they seem to be older – "

"Cas, I know," Dean cut him off. "Garth told me if we came out here, you'd vamoose."

Krissy shook her head. "Only agreed to that because you're too annoying to deal with."

"Seriously – " Dean began.

Aiden cut him off, "Dude, we want to get back to Linda, okay? We made a promise to Kevin, we're gonna keep it."

"To that end," Cas said. "I brought you this."

He handed off a beautiful wooden box. Krissy opened it to reveal various pendants and necklaces, all of which warded off possession.

"Is this part of your 'you're not old enough to get ink' thing, Dean?" Krissy asked.

Dean smiled. "Actually, not my idea, but I'm glad it rides in the same waves."

"Couples wind up looking and acting like each other," Aiden commented. 

"And don't you forget it!" Dean replied, shutting down his snide comment with pride. Why shouldn't he and Cas become more similar? 

"I believe we came to this odd garage for a reason," Cas said blandly. 

"Right," Krissy said. "You need to see this."

She led them over to the area marked off by police tape. She pointed up. 

"What are we looking at?" Dean asked.

"I believe those are Devil's Traps," Cas remarked quietly.

"Sulfur was all along there and there," Aiden pointed. 

An officer approached them. "Agents Stills and Roberts, these people aren't authorized to be here."

Dean stepped out and looked the officer in the eye. "These two individuals are with us. They're - special consultants with the FBI."

"I need some ID – "

Dean leaned in and said, "They're aspiring FBI Agents. Crazy brains, backgrounds in forensics. They can bust this case wide open, but the one thing they don't have – is an ID you're allowed to remember. So how about we skip that part and get back to work?"

The officer ran his eyes over the two younger people with the agents, and while Krissy and Aiden didn't look a day over eighteen in good light, the Minot siblings seemed older, more mature. The guy bought it. 

"Fine, but get them out of here ASAP."

"Thank you, will-do."

Dean returned to Krissy and Cas's conversation about the location of the Devil's Traps.

"They must have been very aware of their routine," Cas said. "To place them so specifically and catch both of them."

"So this is legit?" Dean asked. "I mean, a legit, old-school possession?"

"Well, the bodies in the morgue were definitely human," Aiden said. "Barring all the black goo inside them."

"Okay, so Levi-on-demon action," Dean said. "Maybe we should send the Levi's a fruit basket."

"Dean," Krissy said. "This is serious. These aren't the first people to die because of demon possession in this area. The others had subtler deaths, but all of them are scientists, and we're guessing the demons picked them for specific information."

"Okay, first of all, you're gonna hand over all those names," Dean said. "And second of all, how did you - ?"

"Hacked into the coroner's system," Aiden cut him off. "It's actually not that hard when no one thinks anyone's looking."

The cluster of Feds attracted the attention of more officers, and Dean realized they needed to get things moving. The hunter waved the others toward the Impala, and they managed to drift off without any other Nosy Nellies asking questions.

As soon as they drove off, Cas spoke up, "There are new developments that you should be aware of."

Dean cut in, "No, Cas, com'on – "

"Dean, they need to know," he said. He turned around to face Krissy in Aiden in the back seat. "You are aware of Paimon?"

"Bad guy, we're hiding from him," Aiden remarked dryly. "For months now."

"He is under the employ of Lucifer."

"Lucifer?" Krissy asked. "You mean like – Satan?"

"Yep," Dean added flippantly. 

"Lucifer and Paimon are marshaling forces against Therion and the Leviathan," Cas said.

"So, gearing up for war?" Aiden asked. 

"Yes."

"What does that mean?" Aiden asked.

"It means," Dean said from the driver's seat. "Watch your asses. Protect each other. And – call for help if you need it."

 

Dusk. As the sunset over a beautiful playground, its distinctive decorations threw slightly creepy, yet oddly alluring, shadows. "Welcome to the Oasis of Guymon, Oklahoma" claimed a nearby sign. A young man looked up to his mother, annoyed and bitter in his teenage years. 

The darkness became absolute, and screams became the wind – and when light reappeared in the universe, the woman was dead, and the boy was trapped in a cage of bone. 

Dodge gasped for air. Her face was covered with sweat and her stomach churned. 

"Hey, hey," Sam said. "Come back to me. What did you see?"

"A boy, he's gonna be kidnapped," she said. 

"Okay," Sam said. "You got a place?"

She nodded weakly. "What – what time is it?"

"Why?"

"Because it'll happen at dusk," she said.

"You're sure this is a future event?" Sam asked.

She nodded again. 

"Okay, I'll call Cas and Dean – " he began.

"No," she said quietly. "They're on that other case, and I don't want Castiel to go. I think – he'd be in danger there."

"But you think we wouldn't?" Sam asked skeptically. 

"I – just have this feeling. Whoever kidnapped the boy, has a special interest in Castiel, so if he or Dean were to show, they'd be – they'd – "

"Lucifer," Sam proffered. "He wants Cas's Grace for himself, to regain the power he lost."

He considered everything for a moment; Dodge knew her visions better than anyone. Maybe it would be safer for him to rescue the boy from Lucifer's forces. That didn't make a lot of sense, though, since he was Lucifer's former vessel. Sam also locked the archangel's ass in Hell for eons, so he must be on the guy's most wanted list, if for no better reason than to kill off out of spite.

"Come on, Sam, we got to go," Dodge said, regaining her composure.

"We? Hell no."

"I'm not letting you go alone, and we can't call your brother," she objected. 

"Okay, then – then – "

"And I won't tell you where it is. You'll have to drive me."

 

"I'm Detective Aaron Kurtz," the man said, flashing his badge. "Everybody calls me Kurtz."

"Agents Roberts and Stills," Dean said, flashing his badge and indicating Castiel. 

"You boys're on the weird death case?" Kurtz said. 

"Yes," Cas replied. "How many missing persons and murders have you had in the last two weeks?"

"Uh – what?"

"Ballpark," Dean said.

"Well, now that you mention it, we've had a surge recently," Kurtz replied.

"How big a surge?" Dean asked.

"Seven or eight missing and six dead, not counting these two. But the other deaths were typical murder-type deal," Kurtz said.

"Like?" Dean asked.

The detective's expression changed. "Almost all of them died of broken necks or internal traumas. Definitely murders, but nothing like their insides filled with black goop."

"Was there sulfur?" Castiel asked.

"Sulfur?" Kurtz repeated.

"For the other cases – missing persons, murders – did you find any trace of sulfur on the scene?" Dean asked.

"Uh, no idea. I could check, but, uh, it's not typically something that gets our attention."

"It should be. Sulfur is indicative of very dangerous – individuals," Cas finished lamely.

"You mean like a cult or something?" Kurtz said. 

"More like a calling card for a certain kind of criminal," Dean said, trying to salvage the situation. "If we could get copies of those reports."

Kurtz nodded. "Look, I am more than happy to hand this off if it's some kind of weirdo psycho killing kidnap ring. But just do me a favor and catch the sons of bitches."

The detective walked away before either of them could reply.

"Why do we need these reports?" Cas asked. "It's fairly clear that the Leviathan have been killing demons – or at least the bodies they possessed – in this area."

"Yeah, but Krissy mentioned something about all the people being scientists," Dean replied. "And it's actually more specific than that. They're all geologists or whatever. They all collect data on rocks and shit like that."

"Meaning?" Cas asked.

"Meaning – I don't know. But that's not a mistake. Demons are picking these people because of their knowledge, I'm pretty sure. The other cases turn out to be rock scientists, well, then I'm right."

"You believe that the demons are looking to find something in the earth?"

"Yeah, or a certain place," Dean said. "We need to check if this is a nationwide thing."

"Dean, this is – they can be looking for anything. Or nothing. For all we know, they're looking for the Monster Tablet that Benny already uncovered."

"Well, you have any theories?" Dean snapped back.

"I believe Leviathan are to blame for their deaths," Cas replied. "As to what the demons are doing here, I can't be sure. We don't even know if they were under orders or not."

"So, you got nothing, huh?"

Cas gave Dean a bemused look and cast his eyes down. 

Kurtz returned with stacks of paper bound together with alligator clips. "Sorry, we – uh, cutbacks."

"That's okay, we just – " Cas began.

Kurtz interrupted, "We got another one. You two want to follow me?"

 

 **Guyman, Oklahoma**. Dodge followed behind Sam because he insisted on going first. They entered the playground about an hour before dusk.

"It's kinda weird, isn't it?" Sam asked.

"What is?"

"You said this kid, he's what? Fourteen?" 

"Yeah, and?"

"Walking with his mother in the playground?" Sam asked.

She shook her head. "Maybe it's on the way home or something. Just - let's find him, okay?"

Sam wrapped his arm around her. "Hey, you wanna sit?" 

"What?"

"There's a bench."

It was an old wooden bench, and it gave them a great view of the entire area. 

"You sure that you're okay? I mean, to be here," he said.

"Sam, I'm fine."

"When you said it wasn't safe for Cas, did you mean - "

"Sam!" Dodge cut him off. She reeled herself in, taking a deep breath. 

Sam considered her actions. Finally he said, "You – you lied. There's no reason for Cas or Dean to stay away."

Dodge bit the inside of her lip. "I knew that I needed to be here," she said. 

"So why didn't you just say that?"

"Because you never would have let me come!" she replied more loudly than she meant to. "And this kid – there wasn't time to argue."

"So you lied about Cas and Dean being in danger, because you knew I'd cave," Sam said. "Nice."

"Told you you wouldn't like the real me," Dodge replied quietly. 

"No one likes being lied to," Sam said quietly.

As if drawn by their bickering, two people appeared on the far side of the playground. 

"That's them," Dodge said. 

"It's not dusk yet – "

"That's a good thing," she replied. "We've got time. And I brought my badge."

She stood up and headed towards the strangers. Sam waited a minute to calm down; he'd have plenty of time to be pissed off at her later. Then he followed.

"Excuse me," Dodge said to them. They stopped. "My name is Special Agent Dakota Gage with the FBI. We have reason to believe your son is in danger."

 

Dean followed Detective Kurtz, complaining loudly of his driving. It didn't improve when they turned down a long, slender private road. 

"Seriously?" Dean said. "How do we know this guy isn't a demon gonna kill us out here in BFE?"

"I would have told you if he was a demon," Cas said. 

"What?"

"I can see demon's faces," the angel replied.

"Oh, right, I forgot."

After a far too-long ride, they pulled up to a large house in its own zip code. 

"Damn," Dean commented. 

Kurtz waved them in. "Got a call from an old friend that fits. Body turned up filled with black goo. I figured you'd want to see if before we got all the officers and stuff on scene. It'll take them a couple of hours to lock everything down and – "

"We appreciate the head start," Dean replied. 

The inside of the house was just as impressive as the outside. Its foyer had a high ceiling and a long, graceful staircase. The walls were stone and marble. 

"Nice digs," Dean said. 

"Jason!" Kurtz yelled. "Jason!"

"I'm back here, mate!" a man with a British accent yelled. "Com'on."

Kurtz turned to his companions. "I'll deal with him. You mind waiting?"

"No," Dean replied, and Kurtz scrambled after his friend.

Dean waited a moment before turning to Cas. "You sense anything?"

"No EMF," Cas said. "Some sulfur but the owner of this home collects meteorites – "

"Uh, meteorites?" Dean asked. "What?"

Cas waved his hand to indicate the darkened stones inlaid in much of the architecture, but especially in the long staircase. 

"Cas, what do meteorites have to do with demons?"

"They contain sulfur," Cas replied.

Dean was ready to retort, but he realized they sounded like a bickering couple. So he didn't. 

"Right, okay then – "

Kurtz returned alone, strolling towards them. "Gentlemen, good news – "

"Dean, he's a demon," Cas said, drawing his sword.

"He wasn't a minute ago!" Dean yelled.

Detective Kurtz, or the demon possessing him, threw up his hands and let his eyes go black. "Don't kill the messenger, kiddos! I'm here as your ally."

"Right," Dean said, "because Sammy and I? We shut the gates on you ass clowns. Of course you wanna be all chummy with us now."

"Slamming the gates just forced us to jump through a few more hoops," Demon Kurtz said. "Besides, if I wanted to attack, I would have already. I wouldn't play nice."

"Cas, let's waste the bastard – "

"You're in the wrong place," he said. "Leviathan have been out here killing demons, sure – "

"Why are demons possessing geologists?" Castiel asked. "What are you looking for?"

"I'm not in on the big plans, but best guess is to throw that beastly bitch in a pit and lock her away," Demon Kurtz replied. 

"You mean Therion?" Cas asked.

"She's the one," Demon Kurtz said. "That's what makes us friends."

"We're not friends, douchebag!" Dean said, running his hand along the handle of the demon knife. 

"You don't get it, do you? You stupid son of a bitch! We didn't draw your attention out here. Therion did. She's gonna make a play for a powerful chess piece and you're just handing it over – "

Cas finally made his move, nearly impaling Demon Kurtz, but the bastard smoked out at the last minute, leaving the detective unconscious on the floor. 

"Okay, we need to get him to a hospital – "

"Dean," Cas cut him off. "We don't have time."

"Time? Of course we have – "

"They don't care about the demons, Dean. They just wanted us out here so they could go after someone in our care. Let's go!" 

Cas grabbed Dean and teleported away.

 

Sam waited patiently for Dodge to sort things out. He was certain the mother would eventually ask for his name, so he invented one: James Thompson. That was inconspicuous.

"Ma'am, we'll need you to come with us. Okay?" Dodge said

"You came," the woman replied.

Dodge looked at her sideways. "I just told you that we – "

The crackle of the taser shocked Dodge, and Sam collapsed. The young boy smiled at her as she went to check on him.

"Dodge," he said. "So glad you're here."

"Who the hell are you people?"

The woman's eyes became a fluid, putrid green. "Name's Therion. I've been dying to meet you."

With that, Therion grappled both of them with her long, sticky spider limbs and disappeared.

The flutter of wings announced the arrival of Castiel and Dean. The teenager turned to face them.

"Well, well, you two are sharper than you smell," the boy said. His body bubbled black and fluid as he transformed into a rugged, tall man. 

"Kull," Dean said through gritted teeth, remembering him from before closing the gates, when Metatron had called for help. "What are you – "

"Sorry, you're too late," Kull cut him off. "Although I am impressed. How did you find us?"

"Where's Dodge?" Castiel asked. 

"Dodge? That'd be the odd little Visionary, right? Well, she and your baby brother are just having a little chat with my partner. Don't you worry, boys!"

Dean made a run for him, but Kull vanished into thin air before he got there. 

"Damn it!"


	4. Deuces over Queens

Sam woke up what seemed to be some kind of underground space. It had solid rock and a strange dripping sound. He wondered if he had slipped into a bad horror film.

He was tied to a chair with simple rope, but whoever bound him must have been a sailor or something – the knots were incredible. 

"Don't bother with that," a man said. "Sam Winchester?"

"Who are you? What do you want?"

"Your brother nearly got there in time. Real close one," Kull taunted.

"What did you do to Dean?"

"Nothing. Wouldn't have bothered with you except curiosity."

"Right, I'm a real catch."

"I've met your brother before, you know. And his little angel buddy. But I've never met you."

"Screw you. Where's Dodge?"

"Safe," Kull replied.

"What. Do. You. Want?"

Kull smiled, and on him, it was a long, cold expression that stopped just below his eyes.

"You know, I should be thanking you. Just a little. I mean, you were the ones who made this new beginning possible. Killing Dick Roman. Closing the Gates of Hell. You guys paved the way."

"To what? World domination? That's typical – "

Kull laughed. "World domination is a pain in the ass. That's what good old Dick never got a handle on, you know? Everyone wants a piece of you, vying for you power. It's just – what's the point?"

"Then what do you want?"

"I just wanna settle down with my queen," Kull replied. "Live happily."

"By slaughtering how many?" Sam spat back.

Kull tilted his head, as if wondering if he should answer the question at all. "If I had it my way, almost none. Just eating. But Lucifer and his forces, they hate Therion. And I can't let them take what's mine."

 

In life, William Harvelle had been a hunter. His afterlife came abruptly, and the invitation to become an angel came as just as much of a surprise. During his human lifespan, he acquired a great deal of knowledge of the supernatural world, but now he realized how very little he actually understood.

Harvelle spotted a glitch in his rounds when he went to check in on the Winchesters and could only find one. Despite their mistakes – and the mistakes of their father - Harvelle found that watching over them was satisfying. 

It also gave him a lot to do, given the amount of trouble those two stirred up.

Dean Winchester and his angel – Castiel, that was his name – were on a case, then promptly disappeared. Unable to follow Dean due to some kind of blocking magic, Harvelle was forced to follow Castiel. 

A newly born angel formed out of a human soul tracking the movements of a true angel, a celestial being formed originally as God's soldier, was like a lizard trying to follow a dragon.

But he prevailed, and he was right. Sam and the Visionary were both missing. Harvelle promptly evaded Castiel's notice by teleporting to Heaven. He needed to find Avaida, the Visionary's guardian and lifeline.

 

Therion studied Dodge for a long time. Dodge wondered at how something so human-looking could be so vile; Therion's presence literally made her tense and cold. Dodge met her eyes, and they transformed from hazel to solid green, fluid in color. 

"What are you?" Dodge asked. 

"That's complicated," Therion replied. "You know, I like you."

"What's that suppose to mean?"

Therion shrugged and walked toward a cabinet and table set apart from the rest of the room. She began a long and laborious process of setting up a second table, which appeared with a wave of her hand. 

"You see, Dodge. That's what people call you right? Dodge. All this time, I've been watching from the shadows. And I like you. The work you do. The way you do it. That's why I'm going to give you a gift."

"A gift?" Dodge laughed. "Sure."

"These visions of yours, you know why you get them?"

"Angels."

"Angels could appear in person to you with a message. These days, they could write you a letter or call you on the phone," Therion said. "There's no need for the old-fashion pleasantries of visions or dreams. Which means there's no real need for your misery."

"My misery? Speak for yourself!"

Therion sprinkled something over what looked like a bowl of blood. She continued, "Really? So the visions you received haven't made you leave your job and life and go into hiding? Like a bug hiding under a rock."

"Screw you!"

"See, this is win-win for both of us. No more mind-control from Heaven for you. No more spying for me." 

"Of course, until you come and kill us all," Dodge cut in.

"Don't worry, I've no need to kill you," Therion said. 

The green-eyed creature approached with a small dagger, but Dodge didn't flinch. If some weirdo monster planned on killing her, she was damn well dying with some pride. 

Therion cut open the back of her forearm and gathered some blood. Then she left Dodge, bound and still very much alive.

"What are you doing?" Dodge asked.

"I need some of your blood, some very specific herbs and artifacts – and the Grace of an angel," Therion said. "And this little concoction will terminate our collective problem."

"My visions?" Dodge asked. Part of her wanted them to be over and done with, but the idea of an enemy eliminating something as powerful as her visions pissed her off. "Too bad Castiel wasn't with us. Guess you really overplayed your hand."

"Castiel?" Therion asked. "Ha! Castiel is the only angel in creation that can identify Leviathan while in their human forms. If we tried for him, we'd never get a hold on you."

Dodge was confused, and she didn't appreciate the feeling. 

With another wave of her hand, another woman appeared, beautiful and beaten and unconscious.

"Avaida?" Dodge said. 

"Yes, dear," Therion said. "A plus in angel identification. Now, let's get this going."

 

 **Piedmont, Alabama**. Dean paced the length of the cheap motel room Castiel forced him to get for the night.

"The demons were on to something, Cas, if we can figure it out, maybe we can track her – "

"Dean," Cas interrupted. 

"Or maybe we should focus on that Kull douchebag. Kev still has his notes from the Levi tablet, there's gotta be – "

"Dean!" Cas repeated more urgently. 

"What?!" Dean shouted back.

"Your heart rate is escalating out of control. You need to stop, sit, and drink some water."

"While Dodge and Sammy are missing?" Dean yelled back.

"Putting your body into distress and then cardiac arrest won't help them. Now sit down!"

Dean continued to pace, so Castiel tackled him to the bed and held him in a seated position across his lap.

"Drink," he ordered.

"This is kinda kinky for you, Cas," Dean diverted. 

"If you insist on acting like a petulant child, I will treat you like one," Cas said with no attempt to mask his anger. "Now drink," he said, pushing a small glass of water to Dean's lips.

He obliged and forced himself not to mention how hot he found Castiel at the moment. His mind swizzled between attraction and worry, affection and anxiety. 

Dean swallowed the water, and his heart plummeted into his stomach. Libido lost to anxiety.

"Dean," Cas said as he put the glass of water down on the bedside table. "We'll find them. We'll bring them home."

"Yeah," Dean said miserably. 

"When I was held captive in Heaven, you and Sam brought me home," Cas pointed out. "Which was especially impressive because you found a way to teleport into Heaven with your living bodies and not explode."

Dean dropped his head against his angel's shoulder. "Okay, then, how do we find them?"


	5. Royal Flush

Sam bucked at the ropes holding him down, but they had some kind of special attribute, magic even. When he heard screams from the other room, though, he struggled harder against the bindings.

"You keep that up and you'll get yourself a nasty skin burn," Kull said calmly. 

"Screw you!" Sam yelled back.

A man in his late thirties entered the cavernous room. He seemed out of place, but he approached purposefully. Kull looked him over casually.

"You're new," Kull said, "and we both know, there's nothing new."

The man, Harvelle, took a knife and drew it across his forearm, revealing dark black blood. 

"Strange form you've taken," Kull remarked dryly. 

"Working on disguising myself," Harvelle replied.

"From who? The only other creature in creation who can see us as ourselves is Castiel," Kull replied.

Harvelle's face pulled into a taut smile. "Given the circumstances, I thought it would be tactful."

Kull sized him up, never letting his curious smile leave his eyes. "I have business to attend to. Therion will be very displeased to find this one is has gotten free. You understand?"

Harvelle nodded slowly. 

"Standing orders also include no eating or snacking," Kull added before he vanished.

"So you're Kull's stooge?" Sam said.

"Hardly," Harvelle replied.

He moved to Sam and untied him, speaking quickly. "My name is Harvelle. In life, I was William Anthony – "

"Ellen's husband?" Sam asked. 

"And Jo's father," he added.

Sam decked the man across the face only to feel his digits snapping. "Damn it!" he grunted. 

Harvelle snatched Sam's hand and healed it. When Cas healed, it was like warmth rejuvenating the body from the inside out. But this – Harvelle's touch – was more like resetting. Sam felt like his molecules and cells went back in time to the moments before he broke his hand.

It was unnerving. 

"I understand your reservations, Sam," Harvelle said. "I am not a Leviathan. Understand? I am here to rescue the Visionary."

"The who?"

"Visionary, the one that Heaven sends visions to."

Sam weighed his options. He never heard of Leviathan's healing other people, but he never met William Harvelle in his human form. How could he be sure? 

"If anything happens to Dodge," Sam said, "I don't care what you are, I will find a way to kill you."

"There'll be no need. Come on!"

 

Dodge slumped over as Therion waved her hand and untied her. 

"What are you doing?" Dodge asked, her words sloppy. It felt like she had just been electrocuted.

"Someone needs to give you a lift," Therion replied mildly. "There's no way for humans to traverse to the surface from here – "

Crack! Therion hit the stony wall of the cave, and an invisible force held her in place.

Sam ran to Dodge and lifted her to her feet. 

"Sam? You doing that?" she asked.

"No, I've got a friend. I guess," Sam said, nodding to Harvelle.

"A half-breed monster shouldn't lay a finger on the servants of Heaven!" Harvelle said, throwing what looked like a fireball at Therion. 

It hit her straight in the face, but nothing happened. Then her body changed. The human features blended seamlessly into a semi-reptilian creature with eight long, spider-like legs. Therion's face comprised almost exclusively of deep green eyes, and her mouth was nothing but layers of razor-like protuberances. 

"What. The. Hell!" Sam articulated

Harvelle took hold of the Winchester and Visionary and vanished above ground, leaving the slimy beast to her cave.

 

"Sam? Sam? Is that you?" Dean said into his phone, his voice half-relieved, half-disbelieving. 

Castiel waited for his hunter to speak again but that didn't happen for several minutes.

"You – you're sure? And you're both – you know, alive? And okay?" Dean said. "Good, then, I'll see you at home. Just don't get kidnapped again on the way."

Dean hung up and looked at Castiel. 

"What is it?"

"Sam said that, uh, Jo – you remember Jo?"

"The young woman who went with us to kill Lucifer," Cas said. "She and her mother died on that mission."

"Yeah, Sam said her father – William Harvelle – saved them," Dean said. "He tricked Kull into thinking he was a Leviathan and then blipped them out."

"A ghost?" Cas asked.

"No, according to Harvelle, he's an angel," Dean replied. "That possible?"

"You, Kevin, and your brother pulled that Great Lever yourselves," Cas said. "Human souls now can become angels, through a process of transformation. If they choose."

"Yeah but angels – they don't trick monsters into thinking they're Leviathans. No offense, but you guys are very blow'em up, dick'em and stick'em kinda thing."

Castiel smiled. "But humans do use trickery and wiles to outsmart more powerful foe," Cas said. "That is one of the benefits of humans-become-angels. They transcend but their humanity is still a part of them."

Dean exhaled. "So it's not some kind of screwed up trick, right? They're – they're both okay?"

Cas put his hand on Dean's shoulder and pulled him into a long kiss. "They're fine. We should return to them."

 

"I'm sorry I lied," Dodge said.

They were halfway to the bunker from where they parked the car in Oklahoma. She wanted to say something earlier, but the whammy Therion put on her made her feel weak and hollow for a few hours. 

"You know, I get it," Sam said. "You wanted to go. I just don't get why you lied to do it."

"Because you wouldn't let me go. Not after the mess I've been for days," she said. "Like I said, you don't – "

"Stop saying that!" Sam raised his voice. He brought it back down when he continued. "Look, you don't know me all that well, either. You don't know any the crap I've done, what I've lived with. Not really. That doesn't mean you don't know me."

"But you got close to me when my life was inside-out and upside down," she said. "I can't even explain."

"Maybe you can just trust that I'm not an idiot," Sam suggested. "Neither of us is some twenty-year-old kid. We've both got stuff, even without our jobs, okay? So, can't we just, you know, move on without all the freaking drama?"

She smiled weakly. "You mean like being kidnapped by a giant reptile-arachnid?"

Sam laughed, but he felt a little sick. Something told him that, while Dodge might like him, she wouldn't be around him if she was able to be a full-time FBI Agent again.

"You sure you're okay?" Sam asked. "Whatever Therion did to you, it looked pretty harsh."

"I don't think she finished," Dodge said. "I mean, I'm alive, right?"

"I'm glad."

"Me too."

Dodge leaned her head against the window and shut her eyes. According to Therion, she wouldn't get any more visions. She wanted to believe it. She wanted to believe she had her job back and her life back, but then again, Therion appeared to be human before turning into a large, ugly spider-thing. And she killed Aviada. So maybe it was best not to take her word on anything.

Harvelle asked her about what happened, just as Sam did. Dodge lied to him completely because – she didn't want him to fix it. That was the truth.

'Sometimes enemies win because you simply lack the will,' Dodge thought to herself. She swallowed her disappointed and rested. She told herself that she could tell Sam about it tomorrow or the day after. It was all the justification she needed to fall asleep.


End file.
